Electric automaker Rivian started producing its R2 model in June, and company leadership said on an earnings call Thursday it's already the best-selling Rivian vehicle, outselling both the R1 and delivery vans in the third quarter.
The company produced 19,751 vehicles at its plant in Normal during the third quarter, by far its highest era of production yet. This led to positive economic impacts at nearby Central Illinois Regional Airport.
Rivian is optimistic that it can keep up this pace, and has raised its goal for units delivered in 2026. The goal has been revised up from 65,000-70,000 units to 67,000-70,000. This is the second increase in the goal this year, which started as low as 62,000.
CEO RJ Scaringe said Rivian is "laying the foundations for a future that we believe will be fully electric, autonomous and AI defined." He touted the company's Autonomy+ offering, which allows universal hands-free capabilities that still require drivers to monitor the road and take control if needed. Scaringe declined to share the percentage of Rivian customers who use the optional Autonomy+ feature.
Rivian will build upon Autonomy+ by launching the point-to-point feature later this year to select customers. Point-to-point moves Rivian closer to full autonomous driving. Scaringe is excited about the lower "cognitive load" needed to drive an autonomous Rivian and thinks it can drive "huge changes in market share" in the automobile industry.
Scaringe called autonomy a "major focus" of resources at the company. To help build up its AI capabilities, Rivian acquired Third Dimension AI this month.
Rivian brought in $2.155 billion in revenue in the third quarter — a 38% increase over 2025. In October, Rivian integrated Gmail into its software and released "Halloween Mode," which transformed the digital touchscreens into a Ghostbusters-theme.
